Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for her intervention today on what I think we all agree is a very important topic.
It is unfortunate at times that in the heat of debate the atmosphere in the Chamber does not allow for reasoned debate. I think we all participate in that. I know I do. I confess that from time to time we do not allow it to be a chamber of reasoned debate.
It saddens me, as a member of parliament and as a member of the opposition, when we bring in a motion like this, which will hopefully serve to open the debate even further, that sometimes members opposite and even those on my left would heap only scorn and anger upon us because they do not agree with our position. They do not acknowledge that we are speaking for a number of people in the country who are very concerned about this problem perhaps from a little different perspective than theirs.
I met last week with a group of people in my riding who were concerned about the Young Offenders Act. Some of them were young people. I want to pay tribute to a young person in my riding by the name of Sarah Taylor who, in response to concern among young people over youth crime in her school and the surrounding area, started a youth against crime club in her school. I commend this young woman. She has taken an initiative to tackle the problem.
Some of the feedback I get from her and from others is that there is the perception that somehow either there is no fear of consequence of action in our country because of our laws or kids just do not get it.
Should our laws act somehow as a deterrent to crime?